Yuri's POV
Everything around me was blurred. Nothing was clear, but I could see something moving. I walked closer and slowly, everything became clearer.
It was Ella—she was cooking, wearing an apron.
"Ella? W-what are you doing here?"
She looked at me and smiled.
"Isn't this what you wanted? To be with me?"
She was right. That was what I wanted. But why didn't I feel happy? Was it because I knew I wasn't the one she loved?
"You should leave."
She looked at me with concern. I just avoided her gaze.
Suddenly, she threw the ladle she was holding and took off the apron she was wearing.
"Why do you keep pushing away the people who love you?"
I suddenly woke up drenched in sweat. I hate that dream. I don't want to dream about her anymore. I already forgot about her a long time ago.
Jay-jay's POV
"Bastardo! No one loves you!" shouted the kid from our neighborhood at me.
I could do nothing but go home and sulk in my room. What could I do? I was just a child—smaller than him.
And besides… what he said was true. No one loves me.
I forced myself to wake up from that dream. It was a nightmare!
I reached up and touched my eyes. They were wet with tears. I was still crying because of the same dream.
I didn't want to cry over it. There was no reason to cry over it!
I got up from bed and went straight to the bathroom to wash my face. I glanced at the wall clock in my room—it was only 5:30 in the morning.
After that, I went out to the kitchen. Honestly, I had no energy for anything, but I needed to prepare breakfast.
I felt guilty towards Tita Gema, so I took it upon myself to do things, even though they had plenty of helpers.Unfortunately, it looked like they had already beaten me to it this time.
Breakfast was already prepared. What a waste of waking up early. Darn it.
"Why is your pouting so much?"
I turned to the person who spoke. It was Kuya Angelo!
He walked over to me and ruffled my hair. "Go eat breakfast."
But I couldn't move from my spot. He had scolded me before he left last time. I was also a bit scared of him.
Did I do something naughty recently?
He's Aries' older brother, Tita Gema's eldest son.
"Jay, what are you spacing out for?"
"K-Kuya, when did you get back?"
"Around 3am. I was supposed to go straight to the condo, but I wanted to see Mom first."
I just nodded. He came from Singapore. He's the one handling their family business there now. The last time we saw each other was when Lola was in the hospital.
I still remember the way he looked at me back then—like he wanted to bury me alive. Good thing he seemed to be in a good mood now.
"Has Aries still not come home?" he asked while making coffee.
"Not yet. But I saw him at school."
"Hmmm..." He took a sip of his coffee. "...How are you at school? Mom told me you ended up in Section E."
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Yeah."
Oh, right. Kuya Angelo also studied at HVIS (Higher Value International School). I'm not sure if he knows about the current Section E though.
"Kuya..." I started. "...Do you know anything about Section E?"
He looked at me. "Yeah..."
I moved closer to him. "Tell me about it."
I could see Kuya hesitating. It looked like he was hiding something. I didn't have a good feeling about his expression.
There's definitely something!
"Section E didn't really exist before. They only open it when there are students who get into trouble at school — the troublemakers, specifically. At first, there were only five or six students in Section E, but over time, the number grew."
"Once Section E is opened and students are placed there, they can no longer leave. For example, if you were placed in that section as a freshman, you won't be able to transfer out until you graduate."
His explanation was really long. So that's why Aries said I fit perfectly in that section. Because I'm a troublemaker!
"What else?"
"Uhmmm… I'm not sure if your batch is the same as ours… In our time, only the worst delinquents and hardheaded students ended up in that section. They couldn't be expelled because they had connections backing them up."
Ahh... So that's how it is.
"Then why aren't there any girls in Section E?"
"I'm not sure, but there have never been girls in Section E. Sometimes, a girl like you ends up there, but they always get transferred right away… Maybe because the girls in this school aren't as reckless as the guys."
Well, now I feel embarrassed for being reckless.
"So if you behave and stay out of trouble, they might transfer you to another section right away."
"Hmmm… I'm actually okay with staying in Section E. Maybe I'll just stay there."
"Suit yourself…"
Because even though they were scary sometimes, they seemed nice. And I didn't want to judge them just because they were in Section E.
I still had a lot more questions for Kuya, but I forgot what they were. I'll eat first and think about it later.
I was still in the middle of eating when he said goodbye. He said he'd come back later. That's fine — maybe I'll remember my questions by then.
After eating, I quickly took a shower and got ready. I was planning to walk to school today. I wanted to see how far it really was from the house.
When I went back to the kitchen to get a drink, I saw Tita Gema.
"Good morning, Tita..." I greeted her.
She smiled at me. "Good morning too. Are you heading to school already?"
"Yes. I was planning to walk to school. I want to see how far it is."
"45 minutes..."
I looked at her in surprise. "Huh?"
"It takes 45 minutes to reach the school if you just walk."
I kept staring at her. How did she know that?
"I used to walk to school too back then. I studied there as well."
I just went "Ahh." Tita is so cool. She treated the walk from the house to school like it was nothing.
"I know a lot of shortcuts... Want me to teach you?" she asked with a smile.
I nodded. She immediately took a piece of paper and wrote down the directions for me. There were so many streets: Avenida St., Bonifacio St., Aquino St., and so on.
After Tita gave me the paper, I left right away. Wow! I felt like Dora the Explorer. I first tried the alley closest to the house. It was named Calla Street. According to Tita's instructions, I could take the next street to reach the following one.
Next was Camella Street, then Aquino Street. I was about to enter Aquino Street when I suddenly stopped at the scene in front of me.
There was a fistfight. One guy was ganging up on three other guys.
Huh?! Am I seeing this right?! Yes! The three guys were already down, but the one still standing was kicking them nonstop.
How am I supposed to pass through? The path is narrow and they're blocking the way. If I wait for them to finish, it might take me forever.
Haaaaayyyyy!!! I have no choice!
I walked closer to him but kept some distance—just enough for him to hear me.
"Uhmmm… Excuse me! Can I pass----"
"IF YOU STILL WANT TO LIVE, GET OUT OF HERE!" the guy shouted angrily.
I frowned at what he said. He could've said it nicely! His back was turned to me so I couldn't see his face, but he seemed to be from HVIS too because of his uniform.
"I'll leave once you let me through!" I answered sharply.
He suddenly stopped kicking the guys. I saw his fists clench tightly.
Oh no! He got mad!
He turned to face me and gave me a death glare. His look was terrifying, but it instantly disappeared the moment he recognized me.
This was my classmate! I just couldn't remember his name. I still haven't learned everyone's names.
"Jay-jay?" He smiled at me as if nothing had happened. "I'm your classmate, remember?"
I just nodded and continued walking straight ahead. I passed by the guys lying unconscious on the ground. Some of them had blood on their faces.
"Wait! Are you heading to school?"
I turned to face him and nodded.
"Let's go together... Let me just finish this real quick," he said, pointing at the guys he was kicking.
"Finish? They're already down… What else is there to finish?"
"Not yet… I want their faces bleeding before I leave," he said with another smile.
This guy is brutal. Was he planning to kill them?
"Ugh! Do whatever you want. I'm leaving!"
I continued walking even though I could still hear him calling me.
He looks so young to be fighting like this. I'm even bigger than him. His uniform is a bit loose on him, which makes him look even smaller. Black hair, slightly slanted eyes… He was cute when he smiled.
I should have memorized my classmates' names beforehand. At least written them down on paper. So far, I only knew Felix, Keifer, and Yuri—
"Wait!" I heard him shout.
I didn't turn around because, from the sound of his voice, it was obvious he was running after me.
When he caught up, he grabbed my shoulder. He was panting and had to lean on his knees for support.
"I s-said… Wait for me…" he said while catching his breath.
"I might be late if I wait for you…"
He straightened up. "No, you won't… It's still early."
I didn't say anything and just kept walking. He followed me.
"By the way, I'm Ci-N..."